The 1901 U.S. stock-market panic that followed an attempt to control Northern Pacific Railway shares was the Panic of 1901.
The episode began during a struggle for control of Northern Pacific Railway. Investor Edward Harriman sought to acquire enough shares to challenge interests associated with James J. Hill and J. P. Morgan. As investors bought Northern Pacific shares, the price rose sharply in May 1901.
On 9 May, a shortage of available shares caused Northern Pacific stock to surge dramatically. Traders who had sold shares without owning them faced potentially enormous losses and rushed to buy stock, intensifying the rise. The price then collapsed when the corner failed, producing severe disruption on the New York Stock Exchange.
The panic is sometimes confused with the Panic of 1907, which occurred six years later and involved the Knickerbocker Trust Company and a failed attempt to corner United Copper shares. The 1901 episode was contained relatively quickly, and the competing railway interests eventually reached a settlement that helped create the Northern Securities Company.